Don't Be Afraid
by kittykatloren
Summary: "Are you ever afraid of dying? A sleep that you can't wake up from?" FE 9/10 Path of Radiance/Radiant Dawn; Jill/Haar oneshot, sort of a sequel to Cry for Me.


**A/N: **Somewhat of a sequel to my other story, _Cry For Me_, but you don't have to have read that first. They could have been two parts to the same story, but I just really liked them to stand alone. This just comes directly after that, same setting. Takes place the first time they visited Shiharam's grave.

Please, please, please leave a review. It does wonders for a writer.

**Words: **690  
**Characters:** Haar, Jill  
**Time: **After _Path of Radiance_  
**Genre:** Hurt/Comfort

**Disclaimer: **Everything you recognize belongs to Nintendo, not me.

* * *

Night had truly fallen now, the sun casting mere streaks of watered-down paint across the sky. Haar had held her until she cried herself to sleep in his arms. With a sigh, he lifted her up and stood, careful not to wake her. She wasn't hard for him to carry. Glancing down at her face in the dim light, he saw the tracks of her tears shining against her pale skin, so he wiped her cheeks gently with the back of his hand. Quietly he carried her into their Talrega home, Shiharam's old castle, and into her room, laying her down on her bed. Pausing for a moment to consider, Haar unlaced her boots and set them neatly at the foot of the bed, then placed a pillow beneath her head.

All of a sudden, her eyes fluttered open. She squinted blearily at him through the darkness, and Haar cursed softly, unable to prevent a little smile.

"Damn. I thought I was being pretty quiet."

"You were. I just woke up, just now," she mumbled, yawning. "Thank you for bringing me inside."

"Anytime. Goodnight, Jill."

Haar prepared to leave, taking one last glance at her as she watched the ground, her eyelashes almost covering her bright eyes. Some of her hair had escaped the tight ponytail she always wore, and in the dim light, it trailed across her face like so many tiny scars. The thought made a shiver of fear run up his spine.

"Wait," Jill said quickly as he turned to leave. "I'm sorry. I know you must be tired. I know you must want to sleep. But I… I'd really like…"

"…to not be alone?" Haar guessed. "I know the feeling." He grabbed a chair from across the room and set it beside her bed. He shrugged off her worried frown. "Don't worry. You know me. I can sleep here just as well as anywhere else."

"That's true," she conceded. "But I'm still sorry."

"Don't be. I don't really want to be alone right now either."

Silence fell between them, but it was a very aware silence, for neither of them could truly rest quite yet. It was Jill who finally broke it, her voice a tiny whisper in the still room.

"Are you ever afraid of dying? A sleep that you can't wake up from?"

The question was so unexpected that Haar had to catch himself before he replied. He frowned, wondering how best to explain his answer, "It's just as you said, isn't it? A sleep you can't wake up from." He paused. "I'm quite an expert at sleeping. I guess death doesn't really bother me. Not my own, at least."

Beside him, Jill closed her eyes, an expression of pain flashing across her face. "I'm jealous of you again, I think. Because I'm afraid, and I so wish I weren't. I hate that I'm afraid."

"Don't be," Haar said at once, coolly but powerfully, meeting her eyes. "Don't be jealous, or afraid. Because it won't happen - not until you're as old as that one crow, that Nealuchi. Because I won't let anything happen to you – I owe that to Shiharam, and to you. Don't you ever doubt that, Jill."

He felt her small hand reach out and find his. He twined their fingers together and, on impulse, brushed all the hair away from her face so her skin looked smooth and unblemished once more. His hand lingered against her cheek, and he heard her catch her breath sharply.

"Go to sleep, Jill," he said calmly. "I'll be here when you wake up, I promise. Get some rest."

"You too," she murmured breathlessly, closing her eyes and tilting her face towards his palm. "You sleep, too."

"Gladly," Haar said, smiling at her smile. Pulling his hand away from her face, he leaned back in the chair, comfortable despite the hard wall as his only pillow. Jill's hand was small but warm in his, and he liked the feeling, and did not mind keeping her company like this in the slightest.


End file.
